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Press Release 23rd February 2006
IRELAND’S ONLY FEMALE CHARTER SKIPPER, WINS CONSERVATION AWARD FOR THE FOURTH TIME
The Central Fisheries Board is delighted to present the 2005 Central Fisheries Board Conservation Prize to Mary Gavin Hughes, Ireland’s only female charter skipper from Clew Bay, Westport, Co. Mayo. This prestigious award is presented to the charter skipper who tags and releases the most species in a single angling season.
Mary operates out of Clew Bay and off Clare Island in her Aquastar ‘Shamrock 1’. Her dedication to the tagging programme over the last 20 years has seen her win this award for the fourth time. Mary is renowned for her conservation efforts, particularly in relation to the Common Skate populations in Clew Bay. Her average catch of this species each year is over 40 fish and all are tagged and released. Some fish have been recaptured at least four times and released again. Included in the total of 278 points she achieved this year were 80 Thornback Ray and 66 Common Skate.
The Central Fisheries Board (CFB) organises the well received Marine Sport Fish Tagging programme. To date, over 30,000 fish have been tagged and released including such species as shark, tope, monkfish, common skate and ray. The CFB were delighted to award Mary with the Conservation Shield at this year’s National Angling Show in Swords, Co. Dublin.
Over 70 charter skippers and a few dedicated anglers took part in the 2005 Marine Sport fish Tagging Programme. Over 1,000 fish were tagged and since 1970, a total of over 37,000 have been tagged and released including 17,500 blue shark. This programme is now the largest of its kind in Europe and the second largest in the world after the U.S.A
The CFB would like to thank all skippers that take part in the tagging programme as they enable us to collect important data on all marine species in order to preserve the various species on an ongoing basis.
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Notes to editor
Species tagged are as follows:
Tope, Blue Shark, Common Skate, Monkfish, Thornback Ray, Undulate Ray, Blonde
Ray, Homelyn Ray, Painted Ray and Sting Ray.
For media information, please contact Hazel Dobbyn, PR Officer, CFB, 01-8842656 / 087 9918608.
For further information on the CFB and the Marine Sport Fish Tagging Programme, please contact Peter Green, Sea Angling Advisor, CFB, 01-8842672.
